The number of successful debt settlements under the Out-of-Court Mechanism increased by 81% in 2024 compared to 2023, according to an announcement by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Specifically, 16,903 arrangements were made in 2024, corresponding to a debt adjustment of 5.13 billion euros.

"This significant boost in regulations comes as a result of the improvements implemented by the Government in the operation of the Mechanism to protect vulnerable debtors and limit the amount of private debt that is overdue," the statement said.

In more detail:

• The number of settlements made in 2024 was 16,903 compared to 9,337 settlements in 2023 ( an increase of 81%)
• The amount of settled debts amounted to €5.13 billion compared to €3.54 billion of debts settled in 2023 ( an increase of 44.92%)
• 2,500 vulnerable households benefited from the introduced compulsory regulation
• 140 debtors postponed scheduled auctions by taking advantage of the advance payment measure
• Under the out-of-court mechanism, by the end of 2024, a total of 28,945 successful settlements have been made and debts of €9.5 billion have been settled.

Minister of National Economy and Finance Kostis Hatzidakis said: "The significant increase in 2024 of debt settlements confirms the significant improvement of the institution of the out-of-court mechanism following the legislative initiative we took in 2023. The additional "haircut" of up to 28% of debts, the obligation of Banks and servicers to accept the proposals of the out-of-court system for the vulnerable, the reduction of the interest rate for all debt arrangements to 3% for 3 years, the provision of more favourable arrangements for people with disabilities are the most important but not the only changes we made. For the government, reducing private debt and settling the debts of our truly vulnerable citizens is a key priority and we will continue to work towards this."